The Perfect Con
by WindStar
Summary: He was the master puppeteer...and the world was on his strings.  There was a reason why Neal Caffrey was said to be the greatest conman the world had ever seen. After all...who could ever have guessed that it was all because of him? Spoilers up to Copycat


**Windstar: **After closely watching the end of Copycat Caffrey...and re-watching the chase scene in Need To Know...I've come to a conclusion. Neal was the man they were chasing, and he's actually conning everyone. Thus, this fanfiction: The Perfect Con.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own White Collar or any of its characters or plot vices. All belong to USA network and the producers.

**Spoilers: **All episodes to date.

**The Perfect Con:**

He finally had what he wanted. It took him years. It took him countless attempts, but he finally had it. Everything was put into place. He knew how to orchestrate the entire operation. There was nothing left except for him and his brilliant scheme. He knew just how to take the world by storm and he knew just what everyone expected of him.

He had planned the perfect con. Who would ever have guessed that he had planned it all? Who would have ever guessed that he had made the decision long ago that this was how it was going to be. He worked best alone – and yet for years he had allowed others to be near him.

He was telling the truth to that class that day. He had turned himself in. Perhaps not the way that the FBI would see it – but it was the way that he was more then willing to do. Because he needed to go to jail. He needed people to see that he was playing for the right team.

He needed Kate to run away. He told her everything. He told her the scheme. He told her how he should do it. He told her how she needed to act. He told her everything, except for the fact that Fowler was going to lock her away and refuse to let her out. He told her everything except for the fact that the plane was going to explode.

Oops. Such a minute detail. Must have forgotten.

Oh and the greatest part about it all? He had everyone fooled. He had everyone thinking that he was hurting and depressed and that he was crying at night over Kate's death. He played the perfect tragic hero. The lost love that caused his hands to shake and caused his heart to be ripped out of his chest.

It was so easy to convince everyone that he was exactly what they thought: charming, loving, flirtatious, inherently non-violent. His life was a lie and that was why he could get through everything so much easier. He was the puppeteer and the world was tied to his strings.

Mozzie took the most convincing. He'd been lied to since day one. It was a necessity. To get someone of Moz's paranoia to trust him enough to give him information and to give him the tools he needed to continue, it took finesse. It took skill. It took twelve years and countless run ins with the Detroit mob.

Soon though, Moz believed them to be friends, and thats all it took. Mozzie was loyal and he was easily fooled. Just like sweet Kate. Just like Alex.

Alex had been most fun. Playing with her heart as though it were nothing more then a toy had been vastly entertaining. He was thrilled with the chance to pit her and Kate against each other. They always rose to the challenge. That was the most fun about it. Everything was so wonderful.

The sex was good and the con was fantastic. He felt as though he owned the world. He felt liberated.

Even in jail he'd had control. Everyone was playing their parts nicely. Everyone was doing exactly what he wanted them to do. He let the guards believe that they were mistreating him, he let the warden think he was safe, he let everyone believe what they thought was to be free will – and they were wrong. He'd been controlling them the whole time.

The one that was truly his greatest creation though...that was Special Agent Peter Burke. He had escaped jail, kidnapped his own girlfriend with the FBI that Burke worked for, allowed himself to be recaptured, tricked him into putting a tracking anklet on him, conned him into letting him work for the FBI itself...and then the world became his oyster.

Everything worked according to plan. He would have complete and total proof on everything that he did. His anklet would show that he had never left his two-mile radius. He was perfectly safe. No one could ever link anything to him.

And then there was the music box.

How clever of him! He gave coded messages to Fowler to keep him in line. Through Fowler he kept in touch with what OPR was planning and what they were doing. He discovered from them just how in depth everything was with Peter and his resources.

It was him who placed the photograph of Kate on Peter's desk. It was him who left the breadcrumbs for Peter to find. It was him who hired Tulane to steal the Pink diamond. It was him who had the replica made with his initials.

There had to be enough tension. He couldn't let Peter get too close. He couldn't let him start to worry or concern. This was about destroying Peter. This was about retribution. This was about the music box. This was about the greatest con in the world.

He arranged everything, he made sure everything was done properly. He had OPR set him up with a disappearing act. He knew Peter was going to make it to try to find out about Mentor. He knew all about that. So he told Fowler to tell Peter everything. And Fowler did.

He knew exactly how to reel the man in. El would tell him that he'd given a cryptic goodbye and then Peter would come. He'd come just in time to see Kate be blown to smithereens and just how _tragic _he could appear.

Everything was going according to plan. Everything was going well. Nothing was ever going to go wrong. It had all been planned out perfectly. Kate blew up, he cried a bit for effect, and was put back in jail. Two months later he was released again, and this time he had Peter's complete trust. This time he was being worried about and Burke thought they were _friends._ It was adorable.

There was only one small glitch. Just one small glitch...

Alex Hunter. She still had the key, and he didn't know where she was.

He played nice with the FBI. He did their cases because they were too incompetent to do it themselves. He was more then willing to put on a bit of show for the sake of it. The shaking hands was mainly because Peter was watching and he wanted to rub it in the man's face.

Sometimes it was hard to keep the grin off his face.

His perfect con.

Peter was smart though, and in truth: the was getting on his nerves. He was really starting to frustrate him. Manipulating his tracking data was annoying as it was, but he always did it perfectly. Removing the tracker was easily done as well.

So when he went to the meeting place that he'd designed to have with Fowler, prepared to put an end to the man once and for all – he'd been furious at the sight of not only Peter – but Diana as well! Still, he knew that they wouldn't (and couldn't) shoot him if he was unarmed and running.

He would always be faster then them, and he knew all of the cameras and all of the ways to avoid them. He easily slipped away, and was slightly put out because of it. How dare they. His irritation grew to new levels the more he realized that they were looking into Kate's death. The more they kept up, the greater the possibility that they would figure out that he was responsible. He hated that. He needed to work faster.

He brought Alex back in simply enough: put a hit on her head, and suddenly she came running. It was beautiful. She was just the doting little lamb that he remembered. The best part about it, was because of all the years that he spent with his 'I hate guns' attitude...no one ever looked to him for any of this. It was out of character. It just wasn't _him_.

How foolish. He was a better shot then most snipers and he was perfectly capable of killing someone with a gun. He simply chose not to. He simply chose to let his con continue. He simply chose to let the legends grow. If he hated guns, and would never use them...then he'd never set up a hit on the girl that was his friend.

He promised her nothing would happen to her, and she trusted him. What a fool. He made sure she'd be safe, and just like he knew she would: she gave him the key to the music box. He didn't need her anymore. She was expendable...but a good lay. He might need her later. But for now, he would keep the key for himself. He had to put it to good use soon enough.

For now, he'd wait a bit though...he had to set up some more ground work...just a bit more ground work...and then he could finish it up. He could put his master plan into action.

After all, it took him nine years to complete the perfect con, and he wasn't going to go down without winning first.

He was the master puppeteer...and the world was on his strings.

There was a reason why Neal Caffrey was said to be the greatest conman the world had ever seen.

After all...who could ever have guessed that it was all because of him?


End file.
